Transition to Big Girl room

This week, I decided it was time that we transition Lily officially from her "baby" room into her "big girl" room. I am currently 33 weeks pregnant, so we only have 7 more weeks to go until baby brother is here!

We finished moving her clothing into her closet, and the room has been decorated in her owl theme. I blogged about her new bedding a while back:
http://lilymb.blogspot.com/2010/04/big-sister.html
It's just adorable. She has owl, tree, and bird decals on her wall and I have caught her, on occasion, talking to them. She loves her new "big bed" and the fact that she can now have multiple stuffed animals, or "babies" as she refers to them, in bed with her...comfortably.

The first night of transition, I have to admit, I was anxious. I decided to sleep downstairs on the couch just in case there would be multiple ups and downs. I figured...better to be downstairs than climbing up and down while I'm half asleep!
We did our normal bedtime routine, then Lily said "Mommy, I'm really tired. I'm going to sleep." She asked me if I was going to stay downstairs and I told her I would, so I'm thinking that was of some comfort to her. Then I tucked her in and that was it!
I went upstairs and got ready for bed and when I came down, she was out. I just watched her for a few minutes...my little 3 1/2-year-old in a full-size bed with her owl stuffed animals (Penny & Joy) tucked under the covers right next to her.
She is really growing up.

The next morning she did not want to get out of bed! She insisted that Daddy come downstairs and see her in her "big girl bed" before she got up. We congratulated her on a successful night in her new room and she has been looking forward to it every night since! Who would have thought it would have been this easy!? Hopefully I'm not speaking too soon....

Baby Brother Shower Weekend!

This past Saturday, my friend Ashley put on a wonderful baby shower for our little boy to come. What a wonderful shower! It was in the sea turtle theme of his room, complete with octopus cupcakes! We had a brunch with very tasty food, and Lily was graciously given many "Big Sister" gifts to open! There were family and friends there to celebrate with us. Lily even had some little girls to play with at the shower as well: her cousin Maryanna, and friends Ava and Holly.

We also were blessed to have some of our California relatives out for the celebration as well! Grandma, Aunt Sarah, Aunt Liz, and cousins Allison and Kristin flew out for the event. There were a lot of ladies in our house and boy did Lily have a blast! She got her nails done by Aunt Sarah, and hair done by cousin Kristin. It was a great weekend of "girl time".

Enjoy some pictures of the shower and the fun weekend:

The gifts to the right of Lily were all for her! She was spoiled with all sorts of "Big Sister" gifts!

Wearing her "Big Sister" sticker proudly!

With the girls: cousin Maryanna, friends Ava & Holly, and Lily

With the Bolinger family- Aunt Carissa, Aunt Sarah, and Grandma

With our California family- cousin Allison, Aunt Liz, Aunt Sarah, Grandma, and cousin Kristin

With hostess Ashley

Something I don't want to forget..

I'm currently in my 3rd trimester of pregnancy. Needless to say, the moments of aches & pains/tiredness/crankiness/etc. have become more frequent. This pregnancy, I have had sciatic nerve problems among other issues, and it seems this time around has been overall more difficult than Lily's pregnancy.

Anyway, the reason for my sharing that information is that Lily has been observing every move I make. If I am sitting on the couch, exhausted, she will come up to me and give me a hug. When I am grabbing my back or leg in pain, she is right there giving me little pats or rubbing my back.

I just can't help but wonder, are most 3 1/2 year olds this observant and emotionally-connected to their parents' needs? Is this just her personality or do most little ones react this way?

I have loved every moment of this and it just warms my heart every time she asks me "Are you OK, Mommy?". She is such a sweet, loving little girl and even though my temper throughout this pregnancy has been short (sad to say...many times), it has not seemed to phase her much. Typically, I will apologize to her if I know my frustration is due to pregnancy and not her behavior and she will just respond, calmly, "It's OK, Mommy".

I'm looking forward to watching her grow and interact with her baby brother soon. I know she will be very attentive to him (possibly more than I am ready for :), but most of all, affectionate and loving. And that's more than I can hope or ask for.

Leo Carrillo Beach Trip

Last week, we had our annual beach camping trip to Leo Carrillo Beach. This was our group's 29th year! It was such a fun time of hanging out with old friends, family, and watching our kids get to play together.

Of the MANY kids that were there, there were about 5 girls including Lily- ranging in age from 3-7 years old that played so well together.

Emily & Lily

In addition to the hours of beach time they spent together, we had a manicure/pedicure morning put together by moms Katie & Liz, and face painting from Kenny.

Manicure/Pedicure time with Kalynn, Brooklynne, Emily, and Lily

Butterfly face painting from Kenny

Mrs. Swete also went out with the other grandmas during the week and bought the girls matching butterfly swimsuits. Adorable.

Matching beach babes- Brooklynne, Kalynn, Emily, & Lily

Of course, we also had lots of fun together as a family. Sam and Aunt Sarah ended up with a stomach bug so we did not get to spend as much time with them this trip :-( As usual though, there is always "camping fun" when the Losie group is together!

Lily and Grandma snuggled by the campfire

Lily, Jake, and Sam ready for breakfast

Trip to McDonald's before heading out to the campground